Scott's Song By Song #45: Yuval Ron - Somewhere in the Universe, Somebody Hits a Drum, AND, Rocket Science for Dummies.
Originally posted to Facebook on Sept. 15, 2025
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Welcome to issue #45 of Scott’s Song By Song (#scottssongbysong).For more information about this series, click here: https://www.facebook.com/share/Gc2VkwHQWGLdeaDd/?mibextid=oFDknk
Today, I’ll be doing something slightly different. Recently, Israeli born guitarist and vocalist Yuval Ron, who resides in Berlin, Germany, reached out to me to do a review of his newest single. He also mentioned his previous album, so I said I could review both the new single and the previous album in one article, if he’d be agreeable to that; he was. He provided me with links to download both, but as always , I receive no additional compensation, and am free to “call it like I hear it”. So, now you may be wondering “Who is Yuval Ron?”. I too wondered that and discovered that he began putting out albums as far back as 2004, and is building a reputation as a virtuoso guitarist with eclectic influences. I read a glowing review of his performance at “The Fiddler’s Elbow” in London in 2023, with another recent favorite of mine: Hats Off Gentlemen, It’s Adequate (there might be a Spotlight feature on them soon) on “The Progressive Aspect” website (which I will link below for anyone interested). Over the years Yuval Ron has performed with various backing bands, including The Residents of the Future, and the Yuval Ron Trio. In my review I’ll begin with his most recent album, which is from 2019 and is recorded with famed drummer Marco Minneman (of the Aristocrats, Steven Wilson, Joe Satriani, and many others). The album is titled “Somewhere in this Universe, Somebody Hits a Drum”, and also features Matt Paull on keyboards and Roberto Badoglio on bass. The new single from 2025 is called “Rocket Science for Dummies”, and features another Aristocrats member, Bryan Beller on bass and Simon Schröder on drums.
Let’s get ready for lift off!
First, from the album “Somewhere in This Universe, Somebody Hits a Drum” Feat- Marco Minneman (2019)
Track 1 - Somewhere in This Universe, Somebody Hits a Drum
We begin with the title track which is 7:11. The music fades in with spacey synth effects, arpeggiated clean guitar, which is soon joined by Ron’s wordless vocals singing a melody that is much like the synth parts. He then jumps into falsetto after Minneman and Badoglio join with a marching beat. The rhythm reminds me of Yes’ “Mind Drive”, but with a jazz fusion feel. This intro has been building for 2:20 when most of the music drops out, excepting some quirky synth parts from Paull. Minneman and Badoglio join in soon after on hi-hat & bass. But then is the moment we have been waiting for. Yuval Ron then takes the spotlight with some dazzling and complex lead guitar playing! The rhythm section takes back over after the first head-spinning barrage of guitar playing in odd meters. Ron then returns with more finger-twisting playing. I have been playing guitar for 45+ years and this playing is truly mind-bogglingly impressive. I hear some Alan Holdsworth and Steve Hackett influences there. Paull gets a solo next which is also quite impressive. Badoglio is no slouch himself. This may be Yuval Ron’s album, and Marco Minneman may be the best known player on the album, but Paull and Badoglio are definitely in their league. At around 5:15 the music returns to some of the earlier ideas and by 5:45 the marching beat returns, and the vocals come back like the intro. The vocals are silly sounding at times, but in a good way; like Thijs van Leer of Focus’ yodeling on “Hocus Pocus”. As the track ends, there are spacy sound effects and dramatic drum hits from Minneman, which certainly serve to dramatize the title of the track/album. This is an interesting piece of music with some stunning playing from all involved.
Track 2 - Gravitational Lensing
This begins with all of the players laying down a groove with good forward momentum. The fusion feel continues. After the intro, Badoglio solos a bass line then there are more mind blowing licks from Yuval Ron. This one is very much influenced by “Mars, The Bringer of War” by Gustav Holst, but not a direct cover of it. Incidentally this is the shortest track at 6:43–we proggers don’t play by normal rules of track lengths! In the middle of the track, Ron takes an amazing guitar solo. The ensemble is tight throughout, with Badoglio getting featured before the 6 minute mark. Then Minnemann gets the spotlight next. A very cool bit of instrumental prog fusion!
Track 3 - Kuiper Belt
For those who don’t know, the Kuiper Belt is the disk of objects that contains minor planets like Pluto and other stellar objects that basically defines the outer reaches of our solar system. This track is the third shortest at 8:27. Spacy synth effects start us off again, but they are different from the others. A slightly ominous melody takes over and becomes more ominous with Minneman’s accents on the second go-around. The guitar takes over the melody just before the 2-minute mark. We are at a moderately slow tempo. Ron does not seem to hog the spotlight even though he is the star of this show. Paull gets an extended synth solo following the guitar solo. Then Badoglio gets a bass solo as the music’s dynamic level drops way down. At around 6 minutes in, Ron plays an explosive guitar solo. My goodness this guy can play! At around the 8 minute mark the music stops except for the spacy sound effects. I believe we have exited the solar system!
Track 4 - WiFi in Emerald City
This is one of the three closing tracks that are just south of 10 minutes in length. This one clocks in at 9:44. A rhythmic synth pattern is soon joined by guitar. The rhythm section hits accents as we go with an impressive Minnemann drum-fill or two along the way. Then at around the 40 second mark, the quartet plays a fantastic descending series of runs! Then Minnemann and Badoglio set a quick rhythm. This one reminds me a little of a Steve Morse Band type of rhythm. Around 2 minutes though the rhythm becomes less defined, but is still tight as hell. They lock back in at around the 3 minute mark, with awesome guitar solos over shifting meters. The Holdsworth influence is back in my ears. The synth is up next and Paull continues to impress. At 5:45 we get some fuzz bass as the rhythm section lays down a nasty groove. The music in this section is imbued with a sense of foreboding. There are some sounds that sound like radio transmissions in the mix from time to time. The complex-harmonized riffs begin to accelerate as we proceed, and the music begins to get more and more chaotic! Minneman eventually switches to a double-bass drum pattern that leads to the music’s climax! Very cool! By then we have crossed the nine-minute mark and things quiet down and give us a chance to catch our collective breath! They play a bit of a tag after a few seconds to close the track out. This one was very exciting!
Track 5 - The Discovery of Phoebe
If we are staying with the theme of space, then I suspect this “Phoebe” is not Lisa Kudrow’s character from Friends, but a moon of Saturn. This is the longest track at 9:58. A melodic line with clean guitar chords starts us off here with occasional flourishes from the others. The rhythm section establishes a subtle groove behind the melody after one minute. At around 2:15, the guitar is featured but there is an effect on it that sometimes makes me think it's a bass. The guitar has no distortion. The music in this one is probably the most abstract so far. The beat is constantly changing and it can be elusive. At around 4:20, the guitar tone gets distorted. As we have come to expect, Yuval Ron’s guitar playing is out-of-this-world! Perhaps he really is of extra-terrestrial origins from the planet Virtuoso! After 7 minutes there are sound effects and it feels like we are floating in space! Giant power chords take over around the 8 minute point. After a tight run of notes, the music returns to the intro theme then concludes with a jazzy close. Great track!
Track 6 - I Believe in Astronauts
We again fade-in with spacy effects, but all have been different. The music begins to ebb and flow. Minneman comes in with a marching snare beat that brings the band in, and then they lock into odd-meter fusion riffs. Paull is featured on the synth. It’s hard to believe that this is not a band that has been together for many years of live performances as they are as tight as can be. The rhythm section cooks! There are features from all 4 players as we proceed at a quick tempo. There’s a Minnemann solo at around 5 minutes, followed by a tight fusion riff. By 5:40 the synth is playing a xylophone sounding tune accompanied by hand claps. The bass & drums add some accents. A tight rhythm pattern grows out of that and develops over a few repetitions. Minnemann colors it with drum fills. A synth “swoosh” takes us back to a reprise of the xylophone riff before everything changes. Dramatic synth music accompanies a rocket-launch countdown. The following synth-led section reminds me a little of Kansas. The closing bit takes us right out to space. Fun track!
Now onto the New Single with Bryan Beller and drummer Simon Schröder.
Single Track - Rocket Science for Dummies
This begins with a complex guitar part and tricky rhythms. This would fit right in on the previous album. Beller is walking all over the place and Simon Schröder is solid on the kit, easily navigating the multiple time changes. There are synth parts on this track, but no credits indicate who is playing it. The riff on this one reminds me of Steve Morse again. Ron continues to show that he is an unsung guitar hero. Beller takes the spotlight just before the 4 minute mark. Clean guitar is featured at around 4:40. Wow! The playing around 5:30 is just stunning. The synth and drums take on an orchestrated flavor as the track concludes! Great track!
OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:
If you like virtuoso guitar playing with great players all around, in a hybrid of jazz fusion and prog, then you simply MUST check out Yuval Ron. As I said though, he doesn’t hog the spotlight, and gives all of the musicians involved chances to shine on every track. Taken as a whole I give these songs a score of 4.5 out of 5 Stars. Please see the links for listening below.
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Prog On!
Scott
Links for Listening:
There are YouTube videos for the opening and closing tracks of the album:
“Somewhere in This Universe, Somebody Hits a Drum”:
“I Believe in Astronauts”
And here is the one for “Rocket Science for Dummies”
Of course his music is available on Bandcamp:
You can get his whole catalog for just over 20 Euros!
https://yuvalron.bandcamp.com/track/rocket-science-for-dummies
And here is the article reviewing the live gig!
Yuval Ron Trio / Hats Off Gentlemen It’s Adequate / Splink – T P A
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